


Turn the Page

by Pass1onAndH0pe



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Backstory, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Multiple headcanons, Non-binary character, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-26
Updated: 2015-12-29
Packaged: 2018-05-09 10:32:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,871
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5536586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pass1onAndH0pe/pseuds/Pass1onAndH0pe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I was randomly struck with the idea for a skeleton font character. It turned out they became Gaster's romantic interest.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Foundation

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter gives an overview of their relationship featuring its most important moments.

Somewhere in the void that exists between places a memory began to play as if it were being broadcasted on a TV screen.

 

In the Capital, there was a coffee shop frequented by college age monsters in between what few classes there were. Not a lot could be taught in those days since most of their precious documented knowledge had been left on the surface. Some of it had yet to be figured out or written down comprehensively. This also meant there were not a lot of jobs that required college level learning, but some took the plunge anyway. Someone had to in order to keep progress going.

Gaster sat on the bar by the window. A cup of tea steamed below him on the counter. Beside it was a notepad he wrote on, jotting down ideas he had developed in class. These days he always felt like he was bursting at the seams with ideas for experiments dealing with what magic could do when combined with machinery. Gaster set the pen down and drank a sip of tea feeling satisfied with his progress.

“Oh, stop! Didn’t your mom teach you better manners?”

Gaster began overhearing a conversation.

“Aw, Ariale relax. It’s just a bad joke.”

“Bad jokes are funny. What you said was straight up impolite.”

“…”

“Learn to be nicer, all right? Even if you never talk, it’s always good to be nicer.”

“Why don’t you practice what you preach. No one talks to him, and if you’re so nice, surely you will?”

There came the sound of a chair moving. Gaster heard footsteps in his direction, and they stopped behind him.

Gaster had never heard rumors about himself before. He always kept to himself, excusing it as being too busy or possibly being late getting somewhere. Maybe he had let it go on too long…

He felt an obligation to turn his head and he did.

“Nice day to have tea isn’t it?” Said the skeleton standing behind him. They were about the same height as himself and dressed casually except for the dress shirt. Their smile had a snaggle tooth. The shape of their eyesockets were pleasantly round compared to his drooping ones.

“…Yes, indeed it is,” Gaster replied noticing they held a cup in their hands.

“Hope you don’t mind if I make myself comfortable right here?” The stranger gestured to a vacant seat next to him.

“No, go ahead.” They sat down and sipped from their cup. Gaster felt beside himself with shyness. They had been kind of _dared_ into doing this hadn’t they?

“Don’t pay attention to what they said. There’s a lot of rude people out there, but they don’t mean harm,” said the stranger catching his attention. “My name’s Ariale by the way. Nice to see another skeleton doin’ the ole college grind.”

“That it is,” Gaster paused awkwardly a few seconds continuing with, “My name is W. D. Gaster. Just Gaster will do.” If this fragile acquaintenceship survived beyond a short conversation, he thought negatively.

“Gaster. Nice to meet you,” Ariale replied their grin never fading. “Might I ask what you’re writing there?”

Gaster looked down at his notepad scribbled full of ideas. Should he tell the truth, or lie and cut down on the interest? The sudden idea of getting close to someone made him feel nervous. There were so many ways it could go wrong. He took a deep breath and picked up the notepad. Life these days was all about moving forwards, he remembered.

He began to explain the basics of what he was thinking about experimentation-wise. As Ariale listened, they became more intrigued with what Gaster spoke about. They asked questions at times, but mostly they listened with keen interest. Gaster had a magnificent understanding of science and magic. He wanted to weave them together to make life in the Underground more livable. It was all so hopeful.

The conversation drew on long enough to where their cups of tea became cold.

 

Gaster waited outside the college building where Ariale asked him to be. They had started meeting up for casual hangouts more often this semester so it wasn’t unusual. When the other approached from the entrance their smile seemed almost wider than usual.

“Gaster, you’ll have to come inside.”

“What for?” Ariale rocked back on their heels standing beside him.

“Well, I managed to pull together a little surprise. There’s some monsters inside who wanna hear your ideas,” they explained awaiting a reaction.

Gaster felt the grin on his face grow a little smaller. He had never thought about sharing his ideas with anyone else…not yet at least. Turning away from Ariale, he mused over the idea.

“ _WD!_ Will you please?” That had become a sort of nickname used only between them. Gaster turned back towards them.

“I’m thinking about it. Wouldn’t I need time to prepare?”

“Gaster, you managed to hook me with only a notepad,” Ariale said. And they knew in Gaster’s coat pockets he always carried more than one. Most of the time, one was already full to the brim. “In case you’re nervous, I’ll be right beside you, too.”

Gaster sighed as he gave in. With Ariale beaming at him, he was led back inside the building where, in one of the hallways, a group of monsters about his age waited. There weren’t a lot of them, but it managed to shake his nerve a little.

Standing in front of them, he took out one of his notepads.

“Does anyone…have a preference for where I begin?” Gaster asked politely. One of the monsters perked up immediately.

“I heard you had an idea involving thermal electricity!” Gaster flipped to the appropriate page and began to speak. The monsters clustered around him, and they quickly became engrossed with conversing in scientific terms that went over Ariale’s head. They stood off to the side content to listen. Even though they could have slipped away at any time they remained.

 

They sat side by side in the coffee shop. Their cups of tea were half full and conversation was in a lull.

“Hard to believe we’re graduating soon. Getting jobs. Going into the grind,” Ariale commented looking out the window. Gaster looked over at them. The idea of not seeing each other as often hurt his spirit.

“Do you have a job in mind?” He asked continuing to stare. Ariale nodded and sipped from their cup before speaking.

“I’ll be working in the Capital’s library. It’s big, but parts of it feel so…empty. We still have to make up for what was lost.” Ariale looked down at their cup, then over at Gaster. “Maybe you’ll write some books to fill up the empty looking nonfiction section, huh?”

Gaster comtemplated a thought more important than writing books. He placed a hand between them on the counter. Ariale pretended not to notice. In a way, they already knew what was going to be said next.

“Ariale, will you move in with me?” Gaster felt his soul flutter at saying the words. Ariale’s smile with its snaggletooth didn’t waver. They placed a hand on top of Gaster’s resting on the counter and gripped it lightly.

“Of course.”

Gaster seemed to take a moment to process the information before letting out a relieved sigh and chuckling. In fact, he couldn’t stop chuckling and had to turn away.

“Gaster?”

“I’m sorry I, I was so convinced you would say no.”

Ariale turned their body around to face Gaster, and reaching with their free hand, they rested it on the back of Gaster’s skull. Together, they leaned forwards until their foreheads touched. Gaster became hushed at the close contact.

“Oh, you silly skeleton.”

 

The memory flickered off but darkness grasped at it and struggled to turn it on again to a moment later in that lifetime.

 

“He has the best part of you. Your smile,” Ariale said wrapping the small child in a swaddle of cloth. It would do until he grew old enough to have proper baby clothes. Well, he could have had baby clothes his size if the Underground had a proper supply.

“He has your eyes.” The babe let out a little cooing noise. Ariale’s tired smile grew wider.

“But he also has your pupils. I think he got the all the luck looking like you,” Ariale said smiling over at him. Gaster got up from the bed to stand beside them.

“He’ll have no luck looking like me. Acting like you, maybe.”

“Oh, stop!” Ariale turned so Gaster could see the baby’s face better.

“You’ll see. As he grows up he’ll start acting like you,” Gaster said wrapping his arms around Ariale pulling them and the child closer. “What shall his name be? You name him.”

“Really?”

“You’ve spent plenty of time around books full of names. I’m just a scientist, I’d end up naming him after an element,” Gaster joked resting his chin on Araile’s bare shoulder. Both of them, in fact, were mostly exposed since summoning so much magic at once caused an increase in temperature.

Ariale giggled at his joke and looked closer at the baby’s face peeking out of the cloth. They noticed his tiny smile full of baby teeth. The way his eyes looked around the dark bedroom, but always came back to look at them.

“Sans. He shall be Sans.”

“Sans? As in without?” Gaster sounded puzzled.

“Yes. I’ll, _ahem_ , leave the reasoning up to you,” Ariale concluded. Without Sans they might never have discovered happiness like this. The joy of bringing new life, new hope, into the Underground with the skeleton they loved. They felt better keeping it a secret to be silently known between them.

 

The screen flickered again and the darkness’s grip loosened as if it already knew what was coming next. Something unpleasant.

 

Gaster came up from the basement lab feeling tired. Even with the grants of money he got for research, everything felt like it was going too slow. The machines of war he was working on needed better materials that were always just out of his price range.

Entering the living room, he found Ariale standing there with Sans in their arms. They were talking in a low voice, and their face seemed solemn. A suitcase sat by the front door. Ariale was wearing a casual suit as if they had just come home from a meeting at the library.

“Dearest?” Gaster took small steps torwards them removing the gloves from his hands. His mind didn’t want to register what was most likely happening before his eyes.

Ariale looked over at him their expression staying the same.

“Gaster, I… I thought about not doing this. I thought about it every way I could,” Ariale paused their expression becoming more sad as they went on, “I can’t live here anymore. I just can’t.”

Gaster stepped forwards once feeling as if his chest would shatter. Let this be a bad dream. Let him wake up.

“I do this-”

“To protect us. I know, but I can’t stand seeing you ignoring the present. Ignoring…” Ariale looked at Sans who was two years old now. The child’s smile was small as he looked from parent to parent trying to figure out what was wrong. It all certainly felt wrong.

“Ariale, please.” Gaster’s voice weakened as Ariale approached him. When they handed Sans over his arms moved robotically to hold the child.

“I’m leaving Sans with you. You…you’re smart. You’ll figure out why. Gaster.” Ariale held his gaze as they touched his cheek. They refused to say anymore for a few seconds which to both felt like an eternity of staring into each other’s eyes. “If you need me at any time I’ll be in the library.”

Ariale touched Sans’ cheek and turned away. Gaster watched in defeated silence as they picked up the suitcase and walked out the door. Judging by how stiff their shoulders were he knew they were struggling not to cry. They had been together long enough for him to know that soon as they could be somewhere alone they would breakdown…without him to…help…

Gaster felt Sans touch his cheek and babble. He looked down at him and noticed there were tears coming from his eyes dripping down onto the small hand.

“Dada…,” Sans babbled touching the tears with a frown on his face. Gaster took an unsteady breath and went to sit on the couch. Sans held onto him as he cried there.

 

The darkness holding the TV screen let go. The screen flickered and faded to black. The void was silent and lifeless like it should be.


	2. Breaking Out

There came a desperate reach across time and space. Ariale didn't recognize it was happening. They had been in the middle of shelving a book when their surroundings distorted and they froze in place.

 

Ariale found themselves standing in New Home college's library. It had been built to house all the nonfiction books that had been written over the past few years. It seemed monsters were finally regaining their footing concerning the lost knowledge.

They stood next to a conference room waiting to be used. Ariale already knew who was coming to use it. Someone they hadn't talked to for over ten years.

When Gaster walked into view, he looked up from his notes and froze in shock. Recovering, he slowly made his way over to where Ariale stood patiently.

"Ariale..."

"Gaster." The other couldn't help but smile when he heard his name.

"You haven't changed at all," Gaster said. Ariale found themselves wanting to say things other than what they planned to say. They knew they couldn't let themselves get caught up in missing Gaster.

Ariale smiled politely back.

"Life's been slow. How have you been?" Gaster's smile seemed to faulter at the question. Did they come off as too cold?

"...Well, as you know, I'm the royal scientist, currently. I'm still trying to find a way to protect us all and break the barrier," he explained diverting his gaze. Ariale resisted a sigh. It so far seemed Gaster hadn't changed from back when they last saw him.

"Have you figured it out?" Asked Ariale. It wasn't a question about Gaster's work.

Gaster continued looking away for a few seconds. He brought his gaze back to stare Ariale straight in the face. His expression had changed to look more resolute.

"Do you remember the tragedy? The king and queen losing their children in one night? I have two sons waiting for me at home. Becoming the royal scientist, I'm busier than I was than when they were younger," Gaster paused. Someone passed by into another aisle.

"I will do everything in my power to give them hope about the future. To do so, I must also make sure they won't experience harm," Gaster concluded holding Ariale's stare. They felt relieved to hear what he said. Even if he wasn't entirely changed, he _was_ changing for the better. Gaster even seemed more enthusiastic than when they were in college.

Ariale smiled genuinely at him. Gaster looked a little confused before smiling back at them.

"You can come back. You could meet my son Papyrus whom I made myself. I'm sure Sans would be delighted to see you even if he's older now," Gaster said hopefully. Ariale's smile grew smaller at the offer.

"I can't go back, Gaster. Everything seems fine without me." Ariale turned away looking back to say, "And Gaster..."

"Yes?" Ariale saw the look on his face. Their heart felt torn but they had to stay away.

"I'll be in the library. Both of them."

 

Ariale remained motionless as their surroundings blurred again. The emotions from the end of that whatever it was felt so lonely and bittersweet...

 

They next found themselves approaching the front door with tears already running down their face. In their hands was a bouquet of origami lilies. All of them were white and carefully folded. It had been difficult learning something so quick from a book, but Ariale did it. The times were bad enough.

After calming themselves down, they knocked on the door. Sans answered it his face solemn. Recognizing the stranger as a mourner, he stepped aside to let them in. Due to the fact Gaster had no ashes to spread there was no funeral. Only mourners who could make time to visit the deceased's house and give their condolences to those left behind. Not that Sans let Papyrus see them.

Ariale walked inside and noticed the living room had not changed. They sat on the couch taking a few deep breaths to remain calm, or at least appear cohesive.

Sans closed the front door and went to stand beside them. He had heard plenty of spiels about how great his father had been or how close he had been to someone. It became routine, not that he wanted to feel like that about it. Sans had become tired of it at this point considering his own grief.

"Sans, I... Firstly, I'm sorry it had to happen this way," Ariale began to say while toying with a paper petal. "I'm sorry it happened at all."

Sans remained silent knowing sometimes they rambled. He did notice, however, this time felt different on a subtle level.

"There's no real way to explain how I, I feel responsible. You must have heard others say that. But I," Ariale took a shaky breath continuing, "I especially. I knew your father in college. I knew him long after that and then I..."

Ariale's grip on the lilies tightened. Sans looked over and thought the other looked familiar somehow. Since they knew Gaster for so long, maybe he had seen them a few times when he was little.

"I left him. I thought it was the right thing to do, and maybe it was for the time. I can't help but regret it, Sans. I regret missing so much," Ariale finished the sentence feeling as if their heart would break again. They had chosen the words in their confession carefully. Revealing their relation to Sans would be cruel. Sans and his brother were old enough to where they didn't need another parent in their lives. They would carry on. Right now, it was Ariale who felt like they couldn't carry on.

"You did what you could," Sans replied. He stepped over and gently placed a hand on the stranger's shoulder. "Nobody can blame you for doing enough or not doing enough. I'm sure my old man wouldn't want you to blame yourself for it, either."

Ariale looked up at Sans when he said the last part. It managed to shock them hearing him say those words. Taking them to heart, Ariale breathed another shaky breath. Upon looking down a few tears fell from their eyes.

"Sorry if I seem unreasonable. I forgot to mention my name is Ariale." They stood up handing over the bouquet. "I'm not sure if we'll see each other after today, but if we do don't be afraid to come see me."

Ariale flashed a grin as Sans accepted the offer. They were lead to the front door, and quietly they left.

 

When Ariale came back to reality, they found themselves leaning heavily on a bookshelf. Finding the step-ladder next to them they sat down on it. Tears were being shed over things they couldn't remember clearly. One moment Ariale had been shelving books, the next was like a dream. Or rather a nightmare.

Gaster...they had to get home to Gaster. That's how they would calm down about this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Replace every time Ariale says "If you need me, I'll be in the library" with "I love you" and that's what they really wanted to say.


	3. Pluck

Frisk thought to explore the streets of New Home before going to the castle's throne room. Everything they just learned about their part in the Underground's future weighed heavily on their heart. It felt nice to take their mind off of it, even if they couldn't call their friends in Snowdin. It would have been nice to hear their voices again in a place so quiet which felt odd for a capital city.

The streets were neat and carved out of plain white and grey stones. No monsters were in sight, so perhaps news of their passing through had reached them. Frisk figured everyone was either too afraid to face them or simply waiting for Asgore's triumph. They put thinking about it out of their mind as they approached New Home's library. It must have been the one the librarian back in Snowdin mentioned.

Frisk walked inside taking a deep breath. The scent of old books comforted and calmed them. They liked how libraries always managed to feel homey.

A skeleton monster stood near the entrance with a cart of books next to them. They appeared busy shelving them, though they had stopped once Frisk walked in.

"Hello. Are you looking for a book?" Asked the skeleton in a friendly manner. They wore a dress shirt making them appear semi-casual. The snaggletooth in their smile really chipped in with the casual side.

Frisk shook their head at the question.

"No? Okay then." The skeleton turned back to the shelf picking up a book from the cart. The way their face looked familiar caught Frisk's attention, and they tugged on the skeleton's sleeve.

"Are you keeping me company? That's nice of you," they responded smiling down at Frisk and continuing with their work. The comment made Frisk look around and notice the lack of monsters in the library. Was this monster the _only one_ working there?

When Frisk didn't move away from their side the skeleton said,

"This library’s so big it does tend to get a bit lonely. It doesn’t get many visitors, either. I usually end up making up things to do. It gives me too much time to overthink the past."

Frisk caught the lonely look on the skeleton's face when they said the last sentence. The other looked down at Frisk and saw how they gestured for them to continue talking. The skeleton looked reluctant before going on.

"It’s weird how I can’t remember things like I used to. At least, I think there was a time I could remember things more clearly. The only way I know there’s a problem is because sometimes I dream about a certain someone. I can’t remember any details about them, but they feel important to me. For some reason I associate them with the Core…"

Frisk nodded to show they were listening. The skeleton's smile appeared to grow in size.

"You probably don’t wanna hear me talk anymore about my problems. You’ve got your own to deal with, kiddo," they concluded with a wink. As they began to turn back to the shelf, Frisk tugged on their sleeve one last time.

"Thanks for taking time to speak to me," they replied fully turning around and shelving the book. After checking the cart's contents, they wheeled it off to another section of the library. The big smile on their face stayed as they left.

Frisk watched them go in silence assured the skeleton felt familiar somehow. Nothing else could be done about it so they exited the library. Seeing as nowhere else appeared open they went back to the castle. Destiny had been put off long enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The headcanon here is that after a few resets those who knew Gaster had their memories be affected and fade little by little. Even those closest to him begin to forget.


End file.
